His Lady's Favor
by westwingwolf
Summary: As lord of his land, Lex may lay claim onto anything he so desires...and he desires Chloe. Alternate Universe.


Disclaimer: I do not own the Smallville characters.

His Lady's Favor

He had seen her on his first day back in his homeland which had been given to his family over a hundred years and seven kings ago. His father Lionel having succumbed to illness…some say poison…two months prior while Lex was busy fighting for the king. There was no love lost between father and son; in fact the only thing the young knight regretted was not being able to see the old bastard finally take his last breath.

When Lex had received word and been allowed to return home, he had made the journey in some say record time, quite worried of the damage his younger brother could do in his absence. With Lucas temporarily in charge, he'd be lucky if half the land wasn't burnt and half the maids no longer…well maiden.

Quite by accident, his horse had reared when she appeared suddenly as he passed the miller's home. Only his quick reflexes had managed to calm the horse so as not to buck him off the saddle or trample the young blonde in its path. When the horse was settled, Lex dismounted and approached the young lady with ire in his eyes. "One would think, Miss, that all in the land would know better than to rush past a horse, lest they be a fool…you do not wish to claim foolishness do you?"

He was certain that she would tremble like all others did when he crossed their path, but she merely squared her shoulders and stood with as much height as possible for someone of her stature. In battle, he had not cowered before knights larger than him, and he would not do so before her, but he could admit to being impressed. The flush of anger in her cheeks was particularly intriguing. "One would know, Sir, that horses are meant to travel by road," she pointed to where the road lay beyond the trees, "and not through people's homes. Owing to that perhaps those people are not expecting to be trampled at a moment's notice…unless of course they come across a foolish rider. Do you wish to claim foolishness?"

He had seen the road that traveled around the mill's property but owing to the fact that all the land belonged to him; he saw no need in taking the long way when he could simply cut across.

He could see that this young woman was not raised to behave demure as all maidens should. Yet as bold as she was, she was not flaunting herself as the many wanton women he had come across and bedded in his travels. She was a blended treasure, one he would not likely find again if he should travel across all the seas. One he quickly determined he would be seeing again. No matter what reason or measure of trickery that had to be done to ensure it.

Bowing his head to her, he returned to mount his horse. As soon he was settled, he took a moment to admire the view of her from above, which he was certain she was aware if her quick blush of embarrassment followed by the return of her anger meant anything. "Very well, Miss, if you take heed of the fact that your Lord likes to ride wherever he so pleases, then I will be sure to be on the lookout for surreptitious golden maids." With that, he continued on his previous path, missing the look that crossed her face when his words registered but the sharp intake of breath was more than enough for him to claim as a victory prize.

Not surprisingly as soon as Lex had entered the castle, Lucas had been waiting eager to hand over the reign of command. He was a man of pleasure and took no interest in the effort it took to rule over peasants.

For the first few weeks, Lex spent his time restoring his territory to what it had been prior to his questing. While his father had been a rather harsh ruler, he was an intelligent man, whose brilliance seemed to have waned in the time before his death, making him careless to the business of feudalism. And having Lucas in charge afterwards certainly hadn't helped. The property wasn't as bad off as other surrounding areas, but it wasn't as grand as Lex would have liked.

However, there was one bright spot in his holdings: it seemed the miller Gabe and his young daughter Chloe, the very same lady who had taken his interest, had managed to stave off a revolt by providing his workers with flour and bread either free of charge or at less than its value. Accepting any price or barter the people could afford. Anything to keep his people healthy, perhaps the sole reason his land wasn't as damaged as it easily could have been.

So his Chloe not only had wit and beauty, but a kind heart to match. Quickly, she had become the only candidate in mind for Lady of the manor. However, there was just one slight problem.

Well, there was the fact that at first she still held contempt for him when he came to discuss business with her father. However, as he took his daily ride through her yard, he managed to abate any temper by discussing his travels or providing her with a treasured manuscript, even listening to the stories she created and wrote herself. He should have been surprised that she knew both how to read and write, but the initial lesson he learned upon meeting Chloe was that she could be so shocking that she therefore negated any additional surprise. Still he became eager to engage her, to push her into volleying words with him that he often worried she might catch on to his reasons. If she did, and sometimes the spark in her eyes made it clear that she did, she didn't call him on it. Perhaps, hopefully, because she too enjoyed their conversations.

No, the real problem was that of a young peasant farmer who had apparently captured her heart, and they had to wait from permission from their lord to marry. They avoided asking his father because toward the end the man was too vile to condone any happiness. Lucas refused to grant permission knowing that his brother would return soon and not completely sure of how such dealings were handled. Score one for his family.

It was this 'Clark's' duty to approach him, but Chloe had been easing Lex into the idea by mentioning the boy during a few of their exchanges. Therefore, Lex concluded that Chloe was either extremely clever or Clark was extremely spineless. Most likely it was both.

When the farmer finally did approach him, Lex none so subtly mentioned that Clark's station paled in comparison to Chloe's. That perhaps Clark should first prove himself worthy of being her husband. While he was too old to start training for becoming a squire, there were other apprenticeships that Lex would gladly help him acquire, but it would involve travel and a few years before he could return to claim Chloe as a bride. Didn't take much to ensure the lad that Chloe would wait for him, and Lex vowed to watch over her. In fact, it was too easy to convince Clark that Lex's involvement had to remain a secret as real men arranged for their own way in life.

In just a few days, Clark was off to make his way in this world, disregarding Chloe's pleas to remain.

While Chloe remained sullen in the weeks that passed, Lex increased their encounters, employing Chloe's help to run the manor, asking her to teach others the written word, and continuing their lengthy philosophical discussions. Eventually, he was fairly certain that a day could pass without her thinking upon Clark.

One night, as he was presumably about to see her home, he leaned in to kiss her softly across the lips. Pulling back only a bit to gage her reaction, he was thrilled to see that when her surprise subsided, there was desire. She eagerly met him for their next kiss, and he never returned her to her home that night.

With Chloe's head resting comfortably on his chest, Lex ominously smiled, certain in the knowledge that as he laid in his warm bed, with his soon to be bride who most likely now carried his child,

… somewhere Clark lay cold in a ditch.

The End.


End file.
